Trans-Am Series

For other uses, see Trans Am (disambiguation).
Trans-Am Series
Category Sports car racing
Country  United States
Inaugural season 1966
Official website www.gotransam.com
Current season

The Trans-Am Series is an automobile racing series which was created in 1966 by Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) President John Bishop. Originally known as the Trans-American Sedan Championship it has evolved over time from its original format as a manufacturers championship for modified racing sedans to its current form as a drivers championship open to GT style cars.

The series was formed at the dawn of the pony car era and was derived from the SCCA's A & B Sedan amateur Club Racing classes,[1] based upon commercially produced cars which had been modified for racing competition. Originally the series was open to FIA Group 2 Touring Cars[2] and it featured two classes, Over 2.0 Liter and Under 2.0 Liter, with both classes running together. The series was best known for competition among American V8 coupes such as the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Plymouth Barracuda, Mercury Cougar, AMC Javelin, Pontiac Firebird, and Dodge Challenger in the 1960s and early 1970s. Marques such as Porsche (until its 911 was reclassed as a "sports car" and not a "sedan"), Alfa Romeo, BMW, Datsun, Mini Cooper, Saab, and Volkswagen competed in the series' Under 2.0 Liter category.

History

Beginnings (1966–1967)

Kwech/Andrey 1966 Trans-Am Championship GTA
Kwech/Andrey 1966 Trans-Am Championship Alfa Romeo GTA

At first, the Trans-Am cars were modified versions of their road version. The competition was divided into two classes- an "Under 2-Liter" class (predominantly European sedans) and the "Over 2 Liter" class, 111 inch wheel base or less and displacement limited to 5.0 liters (primarily American pony cars).

The first race was in 1966 at Sebring International Raceway. The overall win went to Jochen Rindt driving an Alfa Romeo GTA (an Under 2-Liter entry), with Bob Tullius (driving a Dodge Dart) taking second overall and first in the Over 2-Liter class.

Allan Moffat in a 1600 cc Lotus Cortina won the third race at Bryar. Ford of Britain had full factory effort with the Alan Mann Lotus Cortinas. In 1966 the Over 2-Liter manufacturers' champion was Ford and the Under 2 Liter manufacturers' champion was Alfa Romeo, with Horst Kwech and Gaston Andrey's GTA scoring 39 of the 57 manufacturers' points for Alfa.

In 1967 Porsche lobbied the SCCA to reclassify the 911 as a sedan. Then dominated the Under 2-Liter field winning the manufacturers' championship over Alfa Romeo. In Over 2-Liter, Ford edged out Mercury to win the manufacturers' championship.

Golden era (1968–1972)

The Ford Mustang driven by George Follmer in the 1970 Trans-Am series.

Penske Racing campaigned Chevrolet Camaro Z28s through 1969, then Roger Penske signed with American Motors to race the Javelin in 1970 and 1971. Mark Donohue would chalk up 20 race victories between 1967 and 1970.

In 1970, all of the American pony car manufacturers were represented with a factory team and top driving talent: Chevrolet had the Chaparral Team Camaro Z28 driven by Jim Hall, Ed Leslie, and Vic Elford. Ford's factory team was run by Bud Moore Engineering with Parnelli Jones and George Follmer the drivers. Plymouth hired All American Racers to run their team, with drivers Dan Gurney and Swede Savage. Dodge used Ray Caldwell's Autodynamics team; Sam Posey and occasionally Tony Adamowicz drove. Jerry Titus ran the Pontiac Team Firebird Trans Am. Penske Racing ran the effort for AMC Javelin, with drivers Mark Donohue and Peter Revson. In 1971 all the American manufactures pulled their sponsorship from the series except for AMC.

As evidence of the original modified production car concept, a fan favorite in the 1971 Trans Am series was the "Grey Ghost",[3] a '64 Pontiac Tempest, prepared by Pontiac Special Projects Engineering Manager Herb Adams[4] and a group of his young proteges (Tom Nell/Jeff Young-Engines, Joe Brady/Harry Quackenboss-Chassis, Ted Lambaris-Body, Tom Goad-Logistics). The boxy six-year-old Tempest had once been Adams' wife's daily driver, with over 80,000 miles (130,000 km) on the odometer when it was turned into an A Sedan racer. It proved to be surprisingly fast, at a time when even a one-year-old car was considered out of step with the competition. It was entered in the opening round of the 1971 Trans-Am Championship. Unable to qualify, the car was allowed to start from the back of the pack. With Bob Tullius behind the wheel, it mowed through the field, and was running second behind eventual winner Mark Donohue's factory-supported Penske Racing AMC Javelin when the engine espired.[5]

Two-Five Challenge

1971 the "U2" class was renamed the Two-Five challenge. The engine displacement limit was increased to 2.5 liters. 1971 was very exciting as Alfa and Datsun fought it out for the title. After a hard fought season with much off-track puffing, the Datsuns won. When these two marques dropped out, interest in the series waned and the SCCA cancelled the series. Successful drivers included Horst Kwech and John Morton.

Beginning in the 1970s, Trans-Am cars would also be seen running in the IMSA GT Championship.

Evolution

Rules changed over the years. Trans-Am became a tube frame silhouette racing car class instead of production-based. In 1976, Trans-Am returned to the two category format, classifying FIA Group 4 and 5 cars as "Category II".

The GT era, big money, turbos and cost escalation (1980–1988)

In 1980, the SCCA developed a weight-to-displacement ratio for handicapping cars. Five-liter, 2600-pound vehicles dominated the field. Soon, tube-frame cars, often based upon commercially available and relatively inexpensive short-track stock car chassis, would begin to appear, eventually becoming the standard for Trans-Am competitors. Turbocharged, small-displacement-engined cars would also appear and proliferate as the decade wore on.

Willy T. Ribbs in a DeAtley Motorsports Camaro in 1983.

In 1983 Neil DeAtley assembed a two-car team of Camaros for the Trans-Am series. DeAtley's major sponsor was Budweiser, which marked the association of truly major sponsor to the series. David Hobbs and Willy T. Ribbs dominated the 1983 season, with Ribbs winning five races and Hobbs winning four. Hobbs took the championship with his more consistent finishes, while Ribbs was named Trans-Am Rookie of the Year.

Greg Pickett in a Roush Protofab Mercury Capri in 1984.

For the 1984 season, Mercury took the manufacturers' title with their Ribbs as the lead driver for Roush Racing. For the next six years Roush entries would dominate the series, winning 46 of the 83 races. Back with Roush again for the 1985 season, Ribbs scored seven victories and became the leading money winner in Trans-Am series history, yet finished second in points, as teammate Wally Dallenbach, Jr. used his consistently higher finishes to take the championship.

1986 was wildly competitive as the turbocharged, small-displacement-engined cars would become more powerful and go from field fillers to race winners. The Roush Racing Mercury Capri V8s and Merkur XR4Ti turbo 4s were head to head against Camaro V8s, and the turbocharged Buick Somerset, when actor/race driver Paul Newman took round 8 in his Nissan 300ZX Turbo. Dallenbach would again take the championship, this time in a Protofab Camaro.

The Roush Merkurs of Scott Pruett and Pete Halsmer dominated the 1987 season, winning all but one race, with Elliott Forbes-Robinson taking that win in his Porsche 944 Turbo. Pruett would take home the championship.

1989 Audi 200 Quattro Trans Am with 4 wheel drive

In 1988, after years of rallying, Audi would enter the series with the 200 turbo quattro via the services of Bob Tullius's Group 44 Racing. Running Audi's Quattro system, the cars piloted by Hurley Haywood with both Walter Röhrl and Hans Joachim Stuck sharing duties steamrolled the opposition taking eight out of thirteen wins. As Audi would defect to IMSA by the end of the season, the SCCA would change the regulation to a two-wheel drive only and banning cars with non American engines from taking part.

Modern era (1989–2006)

1989 marked a major change in the Trans-Am Series, as throughout much of the nineties Trans-Am would evolve into an American manufacturer-based series, with aftermarket V8s stuffed into any American branded car. This would last until the rise of Jaguar at the turn of the millennium.

In the 1990s Tommy Kendall, in a Ford, was the driver to beat—he would take four driver's championships in this decade. Chevrolet was also prominent in this time period, with 6 drivers' champions in their cars.

Paul Gentilozzi rose to the fore beginning in 1998 with his first championship in Trans-Am. He would win four more championships, driving a Chevrolet, Ford, and Jaguar. These latter years also saw more marques enter the field, with exotics such as the Panoz Esperante, Qvale Mangusta and Jaguar XKR. Later in the 2004 season, a Rocketsports Racing Jaguar XKR raced with a production-based 4.5-liter 650 hp (485 kW) DOHC AJ-V8.

Due to a lack of participants and interest, the series all but ceased operations after the 2005 season. However the SCCA continued to own the name and permitted Heartland Park Topeka to run two races in September and October 2006 using Trans-Am rules and the Trans-Am name. Fields were shored up by a makeshift assortment of SCCA GT-1 class amateur racers in town for the National Championship Runoffs later that week.

Return (2009–2011)

The first race of the revived series at Road Atlanta

It was announced on December 11, 2008 that Trans Am would be returning in 2009,[6] with former champion Greg Pickett sponsoring the series with the Muscle Milk brand, using the SCCA's GT-1 category rules. The first race was held March 22, 2009. The revived series utilized the same vehicle rules as SCCA's amateur GT-1 class, providing top GT-1 competitors a professional series to progress to. Tomy Drissi was the first champion upon the series' return.

In 2011, in an effort to increase grid sizes which typically numbered in the single digits in 2010, the Trans-Am Series introduced two additional classes of competition in addition to the 2010 spec which race as "TA1". The new TA2 class consists of SCCA GT2 and GTA class cars while the new TA3 class consists of SCCA GT3 class cars. This is the first time that the series featured more than one class of competition since 1979.[7]

A new era (2012)

On Sept 29th 2011 SCCA announced that the Trans-Am Race Company, LLC will assume management of the Trans-Am Series from SCCA Pro Racing, beginning with the 2012. The Trans-Am Race Company will assume full marketing rights to the series and will be responsible for Trans-Am Series public relations and promotions. SCCA Pro Racing will continue to sanction Trans-Am events and provide contracted event operations services to the series. SCCA Pro Racing President Tom Campbell, cites not having the resources to support growing the series as one of the reason for the transition.

The Trans-Am Race Company is now owned by a group of Trans-Am team owners and competitors. The President of the Trans-Am Race Company is John Clagett. Clagett had a 22-year affiliation with SCCA Pro Racing and the Trans-Am Series, most recently as Executive Director of Trans-Am in 2005 when Champ Car operated and sanctioned the series.

Trans Am partnered with GoRacingTV.com to provide a new form of video coverage for the 2012 season. The partnership provided global coverage of the series. Trans Am coverage was also provided by MavTV.

The series, which is divided into three classes (TA, TA2 and TA3), has experienced record growth over the past two seasons and finds record numbers of entries at every race in 2015. In concert with the series' success, the television package has expanded to a total of 10 races (seven of the 12 events, three with coverage of two races, broken out as TA/TA3 and TA2) carried on CBS Sports Network.

Current racing classes

TA

TA cars are high-performance Grand Touring race cars with tube-frame chassis and fiberglass bodies. They are powered by carbureted, naturally aspirated V8 engines producing over 850 horsepower. As of 2013, the majority of entries carry Chevrolet Corvette bodywork, But there are several Ford Mustangs and Chevrolet Camaros in the class as well, ranging from the modern cars to the old mid to late 90's body work.

An example of a TransAm tube frame chassis by Racefab Inc.
A TA2 Camaro driven by 2012 class Champion Bob Stretch

TA2

TA2 class specifies a tube-frame chassis built by Howe Racing and either Chevrolet Camaro or Ford Mustang body, with the introduction of Dodge Challenger bodies in 2014. Currently, both fuel-injected and carbureted V8's are allowed, but eventually fuel-injected engines will be required. TA2 is, as of 2013, Trans-Am's most popular class among competitors.

TA3A and TA3I

TA3 includes two groups, International and American Muscle. International group cars must adhere to SCCA GT2-class rules and be of a number of different specified models and year of manufacture. American Muscle cars are based on NASA American Iron Racing rules and must be a modern Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, or Dodge Challenger. Both groups feature production-based cars.

Other series based on Trans-Am concept

The Trans-Am Series has used a tube frame-based format, similar to the original IMSA GT Series, since the early 1980s, with heavy emphasis on GT cars. The SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge racing series, run by the Sports Car Club of America, and the International Motor Sports Association, respectively, utilize modified production-based cars, sports cars, and touring cars, similar in spirit to the original Trans-Am racers. With the rise of these series, Trans-Am saw decreased attention from the media. However, Speedvision did occasionally cover Trans-Am races until the series' demise in 2006.

Champions

Trans-Am Manufacturers Championship points are awarded in both classes for 1st through 6th places, 9-6-4-3-2-1, with only the highest finishing example of a make receiving points. Beginning in 1972 SCCA instituted a Trans-Am Drivers Championship based on overall finishing position for 1st through 10th places, 20-15-12-10-8-6-4-3-2-1. Beginning in 1990 the top 25 finishers were awarded points, 30-27-25-23-21-19-18-17-16-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1-1.

Year Champion Manufacturer [8] Champion Driver Car Team/Entrant
1966 Over 2-liter – United States Ford Drivers' championship not awarded until 1972
Under 2-liter – Italy Alfa Romeo[9]
1967 Over 2-liter – United States Ford
Under 2-liter – Germany Porsche[10]
1968 Over 2-liter – United States Chevrolet
Under 2-liter – Germany Porsche[11]
1969 Over 2-liter – United States Chevrolet
Under 2-liter – Germany Porsche[12]
1970 Over 2-liter – United States Ford
Under 2-liter – Italy Alfa Romeo[13]
1971 Over 2.5-liter – United States American Motors
Under 2.5-liter – Japan Datsun[14][15]
1972 Over 2.5-liter – United States American Motors Over 2.5-liter – United States George Follmer AMC Javelin Roy Woods Racing
Under 2.5-liter – Japan Datsun[16] Under 2.5-liter – United States John Morton Datsun 510 Brock Racing Enterprises
1973 United States Chevrolet United States Peter Gregg Porsche 911 Brumos Porsche
1974 Germany Porsche United States Peter Gregg Porsche 911 Brumos Porsche
1975 United States Chevrolet United States John Greenwood Chevrolet Corvette John Greenwood Racing
1976 Cat. 1 – United States American Motors Cat. 1 – United States Jocko Maggiacomo AMC Javelin Jocko's
Cat. 2 – Germany Porsche Cat. 2 – United States George Follmer Porsche 934 Vasek Polak Racing
1977 Cat. 1 – Germany Porsche Cat. 1 – United States Bob Tullius Jaguar XJS Group 44
Cat. 2 – Germany Porsche Cat. 2 – Canada Ludwig Heimrath Porsche 934 Heimrath Racing
1978 Cat. 1 – United Kingdom Jaguar Cat. 1 – United States Bob Tullius Jaguar XJS Group 44
Cat. 2 – United States Chevrolet Cat. 2 – United States Greg Pickett Chevrolet Corvette Pickett Racing
1979 Cat. 1 – United States Chevrolet Cat. 1 – United States Gene Bothello Chevrolet Corvette FEMSA/Kennedy
Cat. 2 – Germany Porsche Cat. 2 – United States John Paul, Sr. Porsche 935 John Paul, Sr.
1980 United States Chevrolet United States John Bauer Porsche 911 Larry Green Racing
1981 United States Chevrolet Canada Eppie Wietzes Chevrolet Corvette Swiss Chalet
1982 United States Pontiac United States Elliott Forbes-Robinson Pontiac Firebird Huffaker Engineering
1983 United States Chevrolet United Kingdom David Hobbs Chevrolet Camaro DeAtley Motorsports
1984 United States Lincoln-Mercury United States Tom Gloy Mercury Capri Lane Sports Racing
1985 United States Lincoln-Mercury United States Wally Dallenbach, Jr. Mercury Capri Roush Racing
1986 United States Lincoln-Mercury United States Wally Dallenbach, Jr. Chevrolet Camaro Selix/Protofab Racing
1987 United States Lincoln-Mercury United States Scott Pruett Merkur XR4Ti Roush Racing
1988 Germany Audi United States Hurley Haywood Audi 200 Quattro Turbo Audi of America
1989 United States Ford United States Dorsey Schroeder Ford Mustang Roush Racing
1990 United States Chevrolet United States Tommy Kendall Chevrolet Beretta Spice Engineering
1991 United States Chevrolet United States Scott Sharp Chevrolet Camaro American Equipment Racing
1992 United States Chevrolet United States Jack Baldwin Chevrolet Camaro American Equipment Racing
1993 United States Chevrolet United States Scott Sharp Chevrolet Camaro American Equipment Racing
1994 United States Ford United States Scott Pruett Chevrolet Camaro American Equipment Racing
1995 United States Chevrolet United States Tommy Kendall Ford Mustang Roush Racing
1996 United States Ford United States Tommy Kendall Ford Mustang Roush Racing
1997 United States Ford United States Tommy Kendall Ford Mustang Roush Racing
1998 United States Chevrolet United States Paul Gentilozzi Chevrolet Camaro Rocketsports Racing
1999 United States Ford United States Paul Gentilozzi Ford Mustang Rocketsports Racing
2000 Italy Qvale United States Brian Simo Qvale Mangusta
2001 United Kingdom Jaguar United States Paul Gentilozzi Jaguar XKR Rocketsports Racing
2002 United States Ford United States Boris Said Panoz Esperante
2003 United Kingdom Jaguar United States Scott Pruett Jaguar XKR Rocketsports Racing
2004 United Kingdom Jaguar United States Paul Gentilozzi Jaguar XKR Rocketsports Racing
2005 United Kingdom Jaguar Germany Klaus Graf Jaguar XKR Rocketsports Racing
2006 No championships awarded - only 2 races held
2007 Series not held
2008 Series not held
2009 United Kingdom Jaguar United States Tomy Drissi Jaguar XKR Rocketsports Racing
2010 United States Chevrolet United States Tony Ave Chevrolet Corvette Lamers Racing
2011 United States Chevrolet United States Tony Ave Chevrolet Corvette Lamers Racing
2012 United States Chevrolet TA: United States Simon Gregg Chevrolet Corvette Derhaag Motorsports
TA2: United States Bob Stretch Chevrolet Camaro Fix Rim Mobile Wheel Repair
GGT: United States Chuck Cassaro Panoz Esperante GTS Cassaro Racing
2013 United States Chevrolet TA: United States Doug Peterson Chevrolet Corvette Tony Ave Racing
TA2: United States Cameron Lawrence Chevrolet Camaro Miller Racing
Germany Porsche TA3-American Muscle: United States Chuck Cassaro Ford Mustang Cassaro Racing
TA3-International: United States C. David Seuss Porsche 996 GT3
2014 United States Chevrolet TA: United States Doug Peterson Chevrolet Corvette Tony Ave Racing
TA2: United States Cameron Lawrence Dodge Challenger Miller Racing
United States Chevrolet TA3-American Muscle: United States Ernie Francis, Jr. Chevrolet Camaro Breathless Performance Racing
TA3-International: United States Jason Berkeley Chevrolet Corvette BMG Management Racing
2015 United States Chevrolet TA: United States Amy Ruman Chevrolet Corvette Ruman Racing
TA2: United States Gar Robinson Chevrolet Camaro Robinson Racing
TA3-American Muscle: United States Ernie Francis, Jr. Chevrolet Camaro Breathless Performance Racing
United States Dodge TA3-International: United States Lee Saunders Dodge Viper V10 PWR Racing

Class wins by manufacturer

Manufacturer Wins
Chevrolet19
Ford9
Porsche9
Jaguar6
Lincoln-Mercury4
American Motors3
Alfa Romeo2
Datsun2
Pontiac1
Audi1
Qvale1

Retrospective drivers' champions

Race historians have rated the overall finishers in the early Trans-Am years by the driver points scheme in place from 1972 until 1989 to crown unofficial overall Drivers Champions for 1966–1971. This listing first appeared in Albert R. Bochroch’s 1986 book Trans-Am Racing 1966–1985.[17]

Year Champion Driver Car Team/Entrant
1966 Australia Horst Kwech
Switzerland Gaston Andrey
Alfa Romeo GTA Bill Knauz
1967 United States Jerry Titus Ford Mustang Shelby American
1968 United States Mark Donohue Chevrolet Camaro Penske Racing
1969 United States Mark Donohue Chevrolet Camaro Penske Racing
1970 United States Parnelli Jones Ford Mustang Bud Moore Engineering
1971 United States Mark Donohue AMC Javelin Penske Racing

Tributes

See also

References

  1. "Members Bios". Road Racing Drivers Club.
  2. Trans-Am Retrieved from homepage.mac.com/frank_de_jong on 14 August 2009
  3. Donnelly, Jim (August 1, 2007). "The Party's Over". Hemmings Motor News.
  4. "Herb Adams". Yearone.com. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  5. "Grassrootsmotorsports.com". Grassrootsmotorsports.com. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  6. SCCA Communications. "AUTO-RACING - SCCA Trans-Am Series Returns in 2009 - SPEEDtv.com". Auto-racing.speedtv.com. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  7. SCCA Pro Racing Trans-Am Series to Offer Multiple Classes of Racing in 2011, SCCA Pro Racing Trans Am Series, September 14, 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
  8. Trans-Am Drivers' and Manufacturers' Champions As archived at web.archive.org
  9. "1966 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  10. "1967 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  11. "1968 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  12. "1969 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  13. "1970 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  14. "1971 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  15. de Jong, Frank. "1971 Trans-Am Championship Table". Touring Car Racing History. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  16. "1972 Trans-Am Box Scores". Sports Car Club of America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  17. Bochroch, Albert R. (November 1986). Trans-Am Racing, 1966-85: Detroit's Battle for Pony Car Supremacy. Motorbooks International. ISBN 978-0-87938-229-2.
  18. http://mustangsdaily.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/01-grand-am-200-585x388.jpg
  19. "No. 6 Sunoco Camaro takes pole and breaks track record! | 2011 2012 Camaro ZL1 SS LT Camaro forums, news, blog, reviews, wallpapers, pricing - Camaro5.com » Blog Archive". Camaro5.com. 2010-06-20. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
  20. http://www.autoguide.com/blog/wp-content/uploads//2014/08/srt-motorsports-trans-am-series.jpg

External links

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